Narci of Flavor Text Lore wrote an amazing analysis of the Pandaren culture and how the ever-present threat of the Sha likely played a huge role in shaping and molding their society. How do you fight a threat when the very act of opposing it adds to its power? Did the Pandaren evolve into this super-chill, peaceful race simply to survive? And what methods might they have to counteract the Sha, and their own negative emotions? (Hint: the answer is amazing.)

The Twisted Nether Blogcast is having a round-table discussion on Saturday! I'll be on the show, along with @Rilandune, @shadesogrey and @restokin! Between Blizzcon, Mists of Pandaria and the fascinating Theramore news that popped up this week, I'm sure we'll have no shortage of things to discuss. Should be a lot of fun! The show will go live at 8PM PST, and there's a chatroom for listeners, so come and hang out!

Speaking of Theramore, Hugh at MMO Melting Pot and I have been working on a lengthy predictions and speculation post about Jaina's city, coming up with theories and answers to basically every possible question about Theramore that we can think of. What will Theramore's destruction mean for the Alliance? What will it mean for the Horde? How will Jaina be affected? Will this cause Thrall to return and replace Garrosh as Warchief? It's not quite done, but when it's finished it will be a huge heaping of lore, tinfoil hat predictions and wild speculation. I'll also just say OMG NAVAL LOGISTICS and leave it at that.

Finally, it's almost November, which means it's National Novel Writing Month! (NaNoWriMo). Last year I wrote Letters from Northrend, which was fun but so, so challenging. (If you don't have a clue what I'm talking about, go read some of the Letters in the above link.)

I've been pondering all year whether to do it again or not, as there's a number of things that will make it more difficult than last year. For one thing, I don't know the overall game lore as well as I knew the Wrath lore, and last year at this time I wasn't really raiding or DOING anything important in-game (the pre-Cataclysm cultist stuff going on), so I had plenty of time to think of ideas and write.

Also, one of my main goals last year was to showcase the interesting NPCs whose stories I felt were still untold. This year, there are just as many fascinating Cataclysm NPCs, but quite often their stories ARE told now! It's great, but it also makes my Letters goal harder, haha.

Ah, what the hell. Throwing my hat in the ring for NaNoWriMo 2011 - Letters from a Shattered World. (The Grimclaw story is already up there, but it's just a bonus letter. It won't count towards the NaNo word count.)

I'd love to get suggestions about interesting NPCs that you feel would make for good Letters! Especially Alliance-side. Leave the names in a comment! You can explain why you think they're interesting, or I'll just figure it out on my own. The only criteria is that they have to be current - I don't want to write any Letters that could have been written prior to the Shattering/Cataclysm.

Gretchen Dedmar. She often goes unnoticed because she has only one kill quest, but her quest text always strikes me when I read it. Somehow she's cold (?) and will soon be in a "mindless state". What that even means is up for speculation. But to her it doesn't matter, she just wants you to retrieve materials so she can make a blanket to warm herself and keep on sewing body bags for fallen Forsaken soldiers.

Being horde scum (;]), you may not be familiar with her, but Joanna is the badass blonde pony-tailed leader of the Alliance offensive in Swamp of Sorrows. Her parents were killed by the orcs during their first incursion through the dark portal, but other than that she wasn't fleshed out too much. Many interesting possibilities there, IMO.

Mylune!! Definitely want one for her. Zaela. The guy in Deepholm who researches the oozes & becomes one. The Naga Battlemaiden! One of the people from Schnott's Landing - a socialite, businessman, etc. One of the "boss" NPCs from TBad- Farson, Wellson, the captain at the top of the tower whose name I'm forgetting, the guy in the graveyard. There, I think that's one from each zone!

Chief Surgeon Gashweld - She's the a female Gnome Priest trainer in the Dwarven District of Stormwind. It could make for an interesting story since being a Priest is so far removed from everything the Gnomes have stood for up until the Shattering.

Another interesting choice, though he's pretty much a one-trick pony, would be Auctioneer Hesse. He's the Stormwind Auctioneer in the Dwarven District Auction House who is a Worgen. Every night he shifts and every morning (presumably) he shifts back. He's the only non-human auctioneer in Stormwind and might have a lot of interesting stories to tell about everyone he's run into in the course of his job.

I don't have any suggestions, but I would like to say I've recently found Letters to Northrend and I have been thoroughly enjoying reading it! You certainly have a skill in controlling your prose. Nice to see, considering how awry material of this nature can be. Anyway, just thought I'd share my enthusiasm for your new 'Letters' project :)

In the undead section of TB there is an NPC named Poshken Hardbinder who is the end point for one of the daily TB fishing quests.

But my favorite NPC so far in all of the Cata zones is Captain Vilethorn (please forgive the link to my own blog), He's in Vashj'ir and simultaneously badass and super angry that the Naga captured him.